Press Release
The 3rd Meeting of the Heads of Reference Marine Organizations of the ECO Member States was held in Karachi on 18th January 2007. It was attended by delegations from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Turkey as well as the ECO Secretariat delegation. It was preceded by the High Level Maritime Transport Experts’ Meeting on 16-17 January 2007 which was inaugurated by H.E. Ms. Naheed Haider, Federal Secretary for Ports & Shipping of Pakistan She gave an overview of Pakistan’s maritime sector and highlighted the significance of economic ties and maritime cooperation among ECO member states.
The ECO Director of Transport & Communications, Mr. Muhammad Mirzaei Kahagh, speaking on the occasion, emphasized the need for active and more meaningful cooperation among the maritime organizations of ECO states. It should contribute more effectively to regional economic development. He hoped that the outcome of the meeting would facilitate furthering the goals of ECO in the field of maritime transportation.
The meeting discussed a number of important issues including establishment of ECO marine website, preparation of a draft agreement on search and rescue cooperation, establishment of a mechanism for implementation of marine-related articles of Transit Transport Framework Agreement (TTFA), enhancement of technical cooperation among member states as well as accession of the member states to the international marine conventions. The meeting, in principle, agreed to establish a regional mechanism of common maritime transport tariff.
The Heads of various delegations attending the meeting delivered country statements. They focused mainly on the policies of their respective governments in the transport sector.
The private sector of the member states also participated in the meeting. A Business Forum was established on the sidelines of the meeting. It held a separate meeting and came up with a set of useful recommendations including the establishment of ECO Federation of National Associations composed of shipping agents, freight forwarders, truck operators, multimodal transport operators and ship owners.
Delegations attending the meeting also visited port & shipping facilities at Karachi and Port Qasim.
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